Comparison Master B 3 ECA vs Grunhelm GGH-30

The source of energy needed to operate the industrial heater.

— Electric. Industrial heaters with electric heaters are fan heaters with increased power. They are relatively small in size and weight, easy to move from place to place (compared to models using other types of power supply), relatively quiet, do not require a supply of fuel and do not create exhaust gases during operation. Electricity is inexpensive and available almost everywhere. On the other hand, such heaters still cannot be used autonomously — in the absence of power grids (or independent sources of electricity like diesel generators), they become useless. Also, such units have relatively low power, while the load on the power grid during their operation is very significant, which puts forward certain requirements for connection and makes long-term work difficult. And for conditions of high humidity, electric models are poorly suited (more precisely, they are not recommended at all).

— Gas. Gas industrial heaters have high power with small size and weight, as well as, low cost. During operation, they require ventilation to remove combustion products. However, harmful compounds in these products are still much less than during the operation of a diesel unit (see below). The main disadvantage of this option is the difficulty in supplying fuel: this requires either a gas line or a supply of gas in cylinders. The first opt...ion is not available everywhere, and the second is associated with certain difficulties because there are several requirements for the transportation and storage of gas cylinders. In addition, at low temperatures, such heaters may lose power, and even under normal conditions, a certain gas pressure is required for normal operation (see below).

— Diesel. The name of this type is because such units use diesel fuel as a power source; however, many can also run on kerosene. Diesel industrial heaters have high power, and while they are much better than gas ones, they are suitable for autonomous use — liquid fuel is safer than gas, it is not difficult to stock up on them in advance, and you don’t have to worry about ensuring working pressure. However, many models also require electricity — but it is used exclusively for fans and control circuits, and the power consumption of a diesel heater is orders of magnitude lower than that of an electric one. On the other hand, the units are much more complicated, heavier and more expensive, because the design should include a tank and a fuel supply system, and they require more maintenance. Another serious problem is the exhaust gases generated during the combustion process: because of them, such devices cannot be used in rooms without ventilation or chimneys (depending on the type of diesel heater, see below for more details).

— Water circuit. Industrial heaters with such a power supply are actually heating radiators, supplemented with fans to ensure air circulation. The source of heating in such devices is a heat exchanger through which hot water passes from a heating boiler or other source of energy. Thus, models with a water circuit, unlike the types described above, are poorly suited for frequent movements and are designed mainly for permanent installation in one place. In particular, such a unit can be a perfect option for large rooms that are heated from time to time, but you need to warm up the space quickly when you turn on the heating. At the same time, the key advantage of water industrial heaters is the minimum energy consumption: in fact, they do not consume energy, but only effectively distribute the heat that would have been used for heating anyway.

The highest heating power produced by an industrial heater.

The maximum area that the unit can effectively heat directly depends on this parameter (see below). Even if it is not indicated in the specs, it can be approximately determined from the calculation that for heating 1 m² of a room with a standard ceiling height of 2.5 m and good thermal insulation will require 100 W of thermal power. If the ceiling height is significantly different, then the power required for heating can already be withdrawn from the volume of the room — every 2.5 cubic metres of volume will require the same 100 W (and the volume is found by multiplying the area by the height of the ceiling). There are also more complex formulas for the most accurate calculation, taking into account the degree of thermal insulation, the temperature difference between inside and outside the room, etc.; they can be found in special sources.

Note that in electric models (see "Power supply"), the maximum thermal power, in addition to all of the above, also determines the total power consumption of the unit: the power consumption (see below) cannot be less than the thermal output (usually, it is somewhat higher due to for the removal of part of the energy for the operation of the fan). In devices with a water circuit, the actual thermal output depends on the temperature of the coolant at the inlet and outlet. Therefore, in the characteristics, a certain standard value is usually indicated, and in t...he notes, it is specified for which temperatures it is relevant (for example, 90 ° / 70 °).

The largest area of the room that the industrial heater can effectively heat.

When determining the maximum area, usually, a universal formula is used that is valid for all heaters: 1 m² of floor space in a room with a standard ceiling height of 2.5 m requires 100 W of thermal power. Therefore, if the ceiling height differs markedly from this value, the actual heating area should be recalculated; for more details on scaling, see “Maximum thermal output".

The power consumed by the electrical components of the industrial heater during operation.

This parameter allows, first of all, to assess the load on the power grid and the suitability of the available power for the normal operation of the unit. It is relevant for all types of modern industrial heaters (see "Power supply"). However, it is worth noting that in some electric models, the power consumption is indicated for the ventilation mode. In this mode, the heating element is not activated, and the power consumption is extremely low — a few tens of watts. In such cases, the total power can be estimated from the maximum thermal output (see above) — in electrical models, these parameters practically do not differ from each other.

— Open coil. The simplest type of heater for electric industrial heaters (see "Power supply"): a high-resistance metal coil that heats up when an electric current passes through it. open coil heaters are inexpensive, heat up quickly, provide a large increase in air temperature (see above) and generally have good efficiency. At the same time, dust or other contaminants can get on an open heater, which leads to unpleasant odours, intense heating dries the air, and the heating element is characterized by an increased fire hazard and has a relatively short service life (in other words, it burns out quite quickly from contact) with air, moisture and pollution).

— Tubular heater. The main element of such devices is also an electric heater (see above), but in this case, it is not installed openly but is enclosed in a metal tube filled with a heat-conducting insulating material (for example, quartz sand). Heating elements heat up somewhat more slowly than open coils, and their heating temperature is lower. However, this type of heater is considered more advanced — primarily because the protected heater is safer and more durable. In addition, a low operating temperature also has its advantages — a large temperature difference at the inlet and outlet is not always convenient, and there are fewer unpleasant odours when the heating element is contaminated.

— Ceramic....The most advanced type of heaters for electric type industrial heaters. Usually, such elements have the form of a series of plates made of special ceramics with high thermal conductivity. Due to this, it is possible to ensure high heat transfer efficiency at low operating temperatures, due to which ceramic heaters do not burn dust and dirt, practically do not create unpleasant odours, and the effect of drying the air from them is not so noticeable. On the other hand, such equipment is expensive.

— Heat exchanger. A type of heater that is used only in water models (see "Power supply") and diesel units of indirect heating (see "Type of diesel heater"). In the first case, the heat exchanger is a circuit through which heated water or other coolant passes, in the second — a combustion chamber of a special design. Anyway, the air passing through the heater is heated by contact with the outer walls of the heat exchanger. To increase the contact area and increase the heating efficiency, these walls often have a complex shape — with ribbed protrusions, plates, etc.

— IR plate. Specially designed plate that transfers heat primarily by infrared radiation. For several technical reasons, it is used only in diesel industrial heaters, and, unlike traditional units, these models do not have a fan. It is because IR radiation does not heat the air, but directly the objects that are under it, so there is no need to provide air circulation. IR heaters are convenient in cases where you need to heat only a relatively small area in a large room; in addition, they can be effectively used even outdoors, where the heat from traditional industrial heaters would simply be dissipated into the atmosphere.

The maximum amount of air that an industrial heater can pass through itself in a certain time.

This parameter is associated with an increase in air temperature (see above): at constant power, higher performance usually corresponds to a smaller temperature difference. Accordingly, a more efficient industrial heater will heat the entire volume of the room faster, but the heating temperature will be lower. So, it is worth choosing according to this parameter, taking into account what is more important for you — a large temperature difference or a high heating rate.

The method of adjusting the heating power provided in the design of the heat gun.

- Stepped. Step adjustment assumes the presence of several fixed power values, between which switching is carried out during the tuning process. The accuracy of such a setting is worse than that of a stepless one (see below), even in cases where there are quite a lot of fixed values. At the same time, perfect accuracy is far from always required, and setting a specific value is easier than selecting the position of the regulator with stepless adjustment.

- Stepless. Stepless systems include adjustment systems that do not have fixed steps and allow you to set the power value in any range from minimum to maximum. Due to this, this setting is extremely accurate, although in some cases it is not as convenient as the stepped one described above.

Fuel consumption during operation of a gas or diesel (see "Power source") industrial heater at maximum power.

This parameter determines the efficiency of the unit; on the other hand, high power is inevitably associated with high consumption, therefore, only models with the same power source that do not have significant differences in power can be compared with each other in terms of high consumption. In addition, knowing the volume of the fuel tank (see above) or gas cylinder, this parameter can be used to calculate the time during which the heat gun can continuously work regardless of the selected power (for more details, see "Maximum operating time"). Note that this time is usually less than the maximum.

— Temperature control. The ability to change the heating temperature provided by the industrial heater. This function allows you to optimally adjust the operation of the device to the necessary conditions and heating intensity.

— Thermostat. A thermostat is a device for maintaining the air temperature at the same level. The principle of operation of this device is as follows: when the required air temperature is reached, it automatically turns off the heating, and when it gets cold, it turns it on again until the air warms up sufficiently. The temperature of the thermostat operation, usually, is set by the operator of the heater.

— Piezo ignition. The presence of a piezoelectric ignition system in the design of the industrial heater. In such systems, the spark necessary to ignite the fuel is generated by the operation of a piezoelectric generator, and its operation is based on the use of a special material that, when bent, generates an electric current. It means that no external power is required for ignition — the necessary energy is generated by the operator himself when the button is pressed. In addition, piezoelectric systems are considered very convenient for several other technical reasons. They are found mainly in gas industrial heaters (see "Power supply") because, for diesel fuel, such ignition is poorly suited.

— Complete fuel combustion. This feature is found in gas and diesel models (see "Power supply"). It means that the fuel in the combustion chamber of the heater burns out completely, without forming soot and other by-products and practically without creating unpleasant odours. In addition, it has a positive effect on efficiency. This feature is especially important for diesel units because diesel and many types of liquid fuels are "dirtier" than gas and more prone to soot. Smokeless combustion facilitates the use of heaters in rooms where there are people — however, note that it does not cancel the requirements for good ventilation, since combustion products still need to be removed from the air.

— Fan mode. The ability to operate the heater in the ventilation-only mode, when the device circulates air but does not warm it up. The purpose of this function is obvious: situations when the room is already warm enough, or heating is not required for other reasons.

— Fuel level indicator. The presence in the design of a diesel heater of a sensor that signals the amount of fuel in the tank. The design and operation of this sensor may vary from model to model: in some devices, it constantly displays the remaining fuel; in others, it plays the role of an alarm and turns on only when the fuel level drops below a certain value. However, this feature makes it easier to monitor the condition of the unit and prevents troubles associated with unexpected emptying of the tank.

— Air filter. The presence of an air purification filter in the design of a diesel heater. One of the “weaknesses" of such units is the nozzles that supply the fuel-air mixture to the combustion chamber; contaminants that enter these nozzles clog them and can even disable them. The air purification filter prevents such troubles: it traps dust, sand and other mechanical impurities, ensuring stable operation and durability of the injectors.